440 BOOK-NOTES, NEWS, ETC. 



British botanists will be interested in the rearrangements of 

 GaryopkijllacecB and Cifperacece (excluding Cm-c.r) which Messrs. F. N. 

 Williams and C. B. Clarke respectively contribute to our present 

 issue. It is unnecessary to say that we demur to certain particulars 

 of the proposed revisions ; but the views of experts on the two 

 orders cannot fail to be of interest. We must enter a protest against 

 Mr. Wilhams's spelling the genus which Ehrhart, its founder, called 

 Honlcenya. Mr. Williams informs us that he has " taken a good 

 deal of time and trouble in hunting up the proper spelling of 

 Honckeny's name," which would seem to imply that biographical 

 research will have to be added to the already numerous qualifica- 

 tions necessary for the ascertaining of correct nomenclature. Mr. 

 Williams's action appears to us not in accordance with the Decan- 

 dollean "Laws," and is a reopening of the Clnclwna v. Chinclwna 

 question, which we thought had been decided by the general consent 

 of botanists. 



Miss WooLWARD is to be congratulated on the completion of her 

 great work on The Genus Masdevallia ; we hope to say more about it 

 on a future occasion. 



The last part ("Anno VI, fasc. 2o, 1896" — not otherwise dated) 

 of the Annuario del It. Istituto botanico di Roma is mainly occupied 

 by contributions to our knowledge of the botany of Somali-land. 

 Dr. Lindau describes the Acanthacem (with two new genera, Leuco- 

 barUria and liuspolia) ; Drs. Hennings and Bresadola the Fungi ; 

 Dr. Gilg the Capparidacea: and ThymeleacecB ; and Signor Chiovenda 

 the Grasses — this last paper being illustrated by thirteen plates : 

 these might, we think, well have been of the size of the pages of 

 the text, as in their folded form they are inconvenient for reference. 

 It is to be regretted that no date of publication is given on the part ; 

 so many botanists are now simultaneously publishing descriptions 

 of new African plants that every precaution should be taken to avoid 

 the possibility of future confusion with regard to priority. 



Thomas Beesley was born on March 28th, 1818, at Banbury. 

 After his apprenticeship he commenced business in 1844 as a 

 chemist and druggist at Chipping Norton. On the retirement of 

 his uncle, Mr. Henry Beesley, he succeeded to his business at 

 Banbury, in which he remained until his retirement in 1887. Here 

 he amassed a considerable collection illustrating the geology of the 

 district, as well as an extensive library, and a herbarium of British 

 plants, which is now in the possession of Mr. G. C. Druce, who 

 received much help from Mr. Beesley in the compilation of the 

 Flora of Oxfordshire. Beesley contributed a list of plants to the 

 History of Banbury, prepared by his uncle, Alfred Beesley, in 1841. 

 This list, comprising nearly 500 species, besides a large number of 

 Cryptogams, was largely quoted by Mr. H. C. Watson in his 

 Topographical Botany ; in fact, it was the chief source of the records 

 from Oxfordshire in that work. Mr. Beesley died at Banbury on 

 the 15th of May. These particulars are taken from the sketch of 

 his life contributed by Mr. G. C. Druce to the Pharmaceutical 

 Journal for Sept. 5th. 



